EWING – When a football team struggles to amass more than 40 yards rushing the ball since week two of its season, it could mean on two things: Either they have such a dominant passing offense the ground game is not needed or they are struggling to hold onto the ball and sustain drives.
To the dismay of many Lions fans in the crowd on Saturday, Oct. 21, it was the latter in a 26-3, homecoming-day los to Kean. The Lions rushed for 40 yards, the third most this season in a game, and the most since week two when they played nationally ranked Wesley College.
The Lions passing attack came to life against Montclair State University two weeks ago, getting them their first halftime lead of the season, but once the defense made its adjustments, the Lions Offense fell flat. The Lions simply could not sustain drives for very long without a consistent rushing game.
The passing attack came to life again against Rowan University, this time getting the Lions their first win of the season. Yet, the team still had to rally at the end of the game defensively to hold onto the lead.
Simply put, if the Lions can’t rush the ball better, their last three games will be rough. The coaches seem to be upbeat about the direction of the team even with the setbacks.
“I think we’ve come a long way,” head coach Casey Goff said during an interview at Thursday’s practice. “I think the team is playing more confident and its starting to show on the field. I think we are taking steps in the right direction. We still have a long way to go.
The Lions passing game and defense have progressed. The defense has not given up more than 27 points in a game since week three of the season, which is a marginal improvement. The passing attack for the Lions has also greatly improved. Goff had nothing but good things to say about Trevor Osler, the Lions quarterback.
“Trevor is playing at a high level,” Goff said. “He’s playing intelligent football.”
Osler is coming off two weeks where he did perform at a high level, but without a consistent rushing game, the Lions will not consistently be successful. Lions opponents that do not have to worry about the running attack go after the quarterback more aggressively. Osler has already been sacked 43 times this season for a loss of 277 yards.
The saying holds true, when teams run the ball effectively, they win games. Since week two of the season, all the teams that have averaged more than 100 yards of ground game against the Lions, beat the Lions.
They need to get better on the ground if they want to improve their chances to win in their last three games. Goff acknowledges the fact that his team has a long way to go.
“We are playing fairly good football,” Goff said. “I wouldn’t say we are playing great football, right now. We still have a long way to go. We are progressing.”
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